Nanomedicine

Nanosystems that deliver anti-cancer drugs or imaging materials to tumours are showing significant progress, particularly those that respond to tumour-related stimuli, according to a review published in the journal Science and Technology of Advanced Materials. However, further research is still required to make sure these delivery systems are stable, non-toxic and biodegradable.

Scientists at the Mainz University Medical Center and the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research (MPI-P) have developed a new method to enable miniature drug-filled nanocarriers to dock on to immune cells, which in turn attack tumours. In the future, this may lead to targeted treatment that can largely eliminate damage to healthy tissue. The scientists have recently published their findings in the scientific journal Nature Nanotechnology.

The research team of Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) have invented a medical device with a specific nanotechnology layer for the proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells (NSCs) in vitro.

A trip to the dentist or orthodontist usually instills a sense of dread in most patients, and that’s before the exam even begins. Add to that the fear of oral surgery with a painful recovery, and many people will avoid these visits at all costs. Now, one group reports a pre-clinical study in ACS Nano showing that they could potentially reduce pain and recovery time with the aid of specialised nanotechnology.

Specialists at Anton Paar have 'printed' a micro-flow-reactor that could simplify the chemical synthesis dramatically. The device is made of steel via direct laser metal sintering and was developed within an international research project called 'CC Flow'. The project is the starting point for tailor-made microreactors from Anton Paar.

Researchers from KTH have succeeded in taking the next step toward using man-made nanoscale compounds in the fight against cancer. A recent proof-of-concept study showed that dendrimers – which were first introduced in the 1980s – may be used to introduce compounds that essentially trick cancer cells into performing self-destructive tasks. Dendrimers – or cascade molecules – are organically synthesised large molecules that match nature's peptides and proteins with respect to size and structure.

Nanoparticle-based drugs have been considered an important contribution to personalised medicine for more than two decades. Potentially deliverable directly to tumors, infections and inflammations in a patient’s body, nanodrugs enable the combination of ideal dosing with precise targeting of the site of interest. To make this type of individualised treatment viable, two interconnected problems that can affect the efficiency of nanodrugs have to be surmounted.

A prototype device developed by an international team of engineers can sift exceedingly tiny particles from blood samples without having to send samples off to a lab. The device, which combines acoustic cell-sorting and microfluidic technologies, could be a boon to both scientific research and medical applications. The system is optimised to sort out “exosomes,” biological nanoparticles released from every type of cell in the body.

A team of scientists from the University of Chicago designed a way to use microscopic capsules made out of DNA to deliver a payload of tiny molecules directly into a cell. The technique, detailed in Nature Nanotechnology, gives scientists an opportunity to understand certain interactions among cells that have previously been hard to track. “It’s really a molecular platform,” said Yamuna Krishnan, professor in chemistry and co-author of the study.

Scientists at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Washington have developed a nanoparticle messenger RNA (mRNA) delivery system to temporarily change gene expression in treated cells. Growing specific cell types in a lab and then administering them to patients is the goal of cell therapies, and these types of treatments are coming closer to reality for a variety of diseases.

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